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Sky Ferreira. Act like you don’t already follow her on Twitter – as if you haven’t Googled her, or checked her out on Wikipedia. Now check again. Before you can hit refresh, there might be another paragraph. She's co-written and recorded with half the Billboard chart, survived in Hollywood and on the Lower East Side, seen the world from thirty-five thousand feet, been shot by every photographer you can name off the top of your head. Now get one thing straight: Sky was singing first. Just click on her piano-and-vocal only cover of Miike Snow’s 'Animal' on YouTube for your evidence that her other skills might pay the bills, but music is her life and her voice is bona fide. Her 2011 debut EP As If! hinted at her soulful range and stylistic versatility. But if you think it prepared you for the step Sky’s about to take on her first long-player, think again. She’s hard at work with a hand-picked team of collaborators. And this time she’s in charge, making the record she wanted to make all along.

"His music is reminiscent of tender makeout sessions from 1987. Or how I imagine it would be if I hadn't been six at the time," tweets @billbergstrom. And it's true, there's a lushness and warmth to Pfenning's new songs that is nevertheless anything but sleepy – this is intense, sexual, lush-warm music. Not unlike the man himself.

In 2005 Aaron started the group that would first draw him serious attention, Chairlift. After producing an initial full-length (2007's "Daylight Savings") at Elliott Smith's studio in Los Angeles, the band relocated to New York, wrote & co-produced a new batch of songs ("Does You Inspire You" (2008)), and signed to Columbia Records. Chairlift toured everywhere people like bands, playing with such indie jewels as The Killers, Phoenix, Ariel Pink, John Maus, and MGMT. They did Bonnaroo, Lollapallooza, & All Points West, soundtracked an iPod commercial, and received an MTV VMA nomination for "Evident Utensil." After a vigorous two years working the Chairlift record, Aaron shifted his attention to Rewards early this year.

"Are you 'Rewards' for this bio?" the author wanted to know. "Aaron Pfenning IS Rewards, baby snakes," is what Aaron Pfenning texted back. This is very literally true. Over the last eight months, as Aaron has applied his gentle-yet-assured touch to the crafting of his new album, he has played all of the instruments, produced and engineered all of the recordings. For performances, he has experimented with everything from a solo show to a five-piece (including, yes, a two-piece, three-piece, and four-piece), always anchored by his seductive, leonine stage-presence and utterly unique vocals that swing easily from a croon to a howl.

Brandon Flowers told Entertainment Weekly, "It reminds me of the desert, the way he plays. That's something that I try to capture myself. I'm a little jealous that he does it so effortlessly."